Best research materials for learning to identify old porcelain & glass?

Hello Antiquers! I love this forum, thank you all for sharing your experience and your finds. I'm a newbie but I don't want to be one of those people who expects everyone else to provide all the answers for me. I'm happy to do the legwork and in fact I really enjoy research.

In addition to the pinned topics, what sources do you recommend for learning about old porcelain & glass? I'd like to become more knowledgeable in a general sense, as well as learning how to develop a good eye and best places to research maker's marks.

And in general, are printed antiques identification and price guides still relevant? If so, which ones do you like? Is it best to invest in the very latest editions?

Thank you in advance for sharing your thoughts, I appreciate it.

p.s. I grew up with parents who loved and appreciated old things, and I do, too. I just wish I'd absorbed more of their knowledge!

p.p.s. Can I move this to the Porcelain & Glass section if that's deemed more appropriate?

 

Books books and more books. Price guides not really relevant any longer - internet better. I’ve got over a hundred books now and they have been a fantastic resource. Start by specialising in an area that you like - nobody can know everything about everything.

 

supposing you're in the US I'd start wih Warman's Antiques & Collectibles, which gives you a survey of the market prices and has easily understandable style classifications for many topics.

 

I am, and thank you. Now I'm assuming this is an annual guide, and I should buy the latest edition, right? Warman's sounds like a good general overview.

 

I am primarily focused on ceramics but have a interest in many other areas. I haven't found general antiques guides all that helpful but perhaps others have.

I find that handling as many properly identified objects as possible is without parallel. Visit museums and similar to view what things should look like and look for good antiques shops etc. where you can handle them in person.

Try to learn the differences in material type etc. For example, the difference between earthenware, porcelain and stoneware etc. (The term "ceramic" includes all of those.)

For identification and information I also have a library of several hundred books. For identifying ceramic marks a place to start might be Kovel's New Dictionary of Marks. It isn't perfect and doesn't cover nearly everything but it is a place to start to scratch the surface then research some more from there. They are pretty cheap on Ebay and through second hand sellers.

 

yes, it's annual. but good value for the money.
together with David Rago's Pottery & Porcelain - although a price guide as well - it makes a nice couple to start off.
what I abhor is Kovel's; one of only a few books I threw into the dump.

 

Thank you so much, say_it_slowly - that is extremely helpful.

 

It sounds like I should check out some books and see what format etc. appeals to me.

 

a good approach. I like rather good photographs than overlong texts I have forgotten the next day.

 

I have tons of price guides that are outdated, but I never bought them for the pricing (which is often inflated), I use them to ID. I also seem to get more out of books that have good, clear photos and brief descriptions.

 

I agree books are often times the best way to go. I have many that are so old now, some out of print and so on.

If you attend estate sales or yard sales, often times those folks have a stash of books with some containing collecting glass, ceramic etc. If not many of the books are pretty inexpensive now to buy online, except the new Pyrex Passion book which is crazy pricey.

 

First, I would always recommend getting a good grounding in the basic technology and terminology of a class of objects, so you can understand the descriptions and distinctions when learning about more specific types. A good introduction to the general field of ceramics is:
Bryan Sentance - Ceramics: A World Guide to Traditional Techniques. Thames & Hudson, 2004. ISBN 0-500-51177-2
For glass, I would recommend:
Keith Cummings - A History of Glassforming. A&C Black, 2002. ISBN 0-7136-5274-8

 

Check out what is available from your local library. That way you can peruse the contents for a couple of weeks & if it looks like it might be what you are looking for you can keep an eye out on eBay or elsewhere for a copy for yourself.

Warman's is okay but for me, they were way too general in their approach. If you are looking for a specific type of glass or a specific brand of porcelain or a particular style of pottery than you need to look at books that deal with just that type of item. Most of the books that deal with a specific type or brand of item is going to start off with chapters devoted to the history of the company or how the particular type of glass was produced or other details that will help you understand why certain aspects are important.

As Marie said earlier, the price guides were not all that accurate when the book was published in the first place. Prices have always been affected by your location, what type of venue the item was for sale at & who was doing the selling at the venue.

 

"If you are looking for a specific type of glass or a specific brand of porcelain or a particular style of pottery than you need to look at books that deal with just that type of item."
I wholeheartedly agree, BUT a beginner has to find out first where the journey goes to for him before starting to buy specialised books that are rather costly.

 

I grew up on Warman's Antiques and Their Prices. This was the earlier version of Warman's Antiques & Collectibles. Good overall descriptions of items.

Schroeder's is another good price guide, no longer in publication. You're not using it for pricing so much as for ID. You can often find these at used book stores, flea markets and sometimes estate sales for $5 or less.

With price guides you get an overall feel for all types of antiques. Which is good if you are out and about. Don't know if you are only going to collect or try and sell.

Price guide descriptions don't change from each year to year publication. Just the items and their prices which are now outdated. So there is no need to get each year.

I never liked Kovels.

Checking books out from the library would be a good start. You will probably be drawn to a particular type of glass or pottery. Then you can ask the library to get books on that subject. If you like a certain book Ebay or Abe books would be places to look for inexpensive copies, besides used book stores.

I totally agree with Say it Slowly. Museums, good antique stores where they know what they have, and you can ask questions about items as well as handle them. A good dealer will be willing to teach you. We like to share what we've learned.

I would also add going to antique shows if you have any near you.

 

To train your eye, I recommend that you visit as many museums as possible, study catalogs of trustworthy auction houses such as Christies, Sotheby's or Bonhams, and get as many authentic items in your hand as possible.
Focus on an area / brand first. Once you've mastered this, you can expand to another area / brand. damaged, chipped original pieces are inexpensive study material to better understand how the colors, decoration, baking technique, used mold, footrim should look and feel. it certainly costs money but ultimately saves you even more money

 

That is why I suggested they go to their local public library & check out different types of books until they figure out which direction they wanted to go in.